Semiconductor package

ABSTRACT

A method includes forming a first package structure including a first connection member including a first redistribution layer, a first frame having a first through-portion, a first semiconductor chip having a connection pad electrically connected to the first redistribution layer, and a first encapsulant covering a portion of each of the first frame and the first semiconductor chip, forming a second package structure including a second connection member including a second redistribution layer, a second semiconductor chip having a second connection pad, and a second encapsulant covering a portion of the second semiconductor chip, forming a first through-via, the first through-via electrically connecting to the second redistribution layer, and laminating the first package structure on the second package structure. After the laminating, the first through-via penetrates through the first frame, the first encapsulant, and a portion of the first connection member, and is electrically connected to the first redistribution layer.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/715,697, filed Dec. 16, 2019, which claims priority to Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2019-0035865 filed on Mar. 28, 2019 in the KoreanIntellectual Property Office, the disclosures of each of which areincorporated by reference herein in their entireties.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The present disclosure relates to a semiconductor package substrate, forexample, a semiconductor package in which a plurality of packagestructures are stacked.

2. Description of Related Art

Recently, a significant trend in the development of technology relatedto semiconductor chips has been to reduce the size of semiconductorchips. Therefore, in the field of package technology, in accordance witha rapid increase in demand for small-sized semiconductor chips, or thelike, the implementation of a semiconductor package having a compactsize while including a plurality of pins has been demanded.

One type of package technology suggested to satisfy the technical demanddescribed above is a fan-out semiconductor package. Such a fan-outsemiconductor package has a compact size and may allow a plurality ofpins to be implemented by redistributing solder balls or the likeoutwardly of a region in which a semiconductor chip is disposed.

SUMMARY

It is an aspect to provide a semiconductor package which may be thinnedand achieve high performance even if a plurality of semiconductor chipsare included therein.

According to an aspect of an example embodiment, there is provided asemiconductor package comprising a first connection member including afirst redistribution layer; a first frame, disposed on the firstconnection member, having a first through-portion; a first semiconductorchip, disposed on the first through-portion, having a connection padelectrically connected to the first redistribution layer; a firstencapsulant, disposed on the first connection member, covering at leasta portion of each of the first frame and the first semiconductor chipand filling at least a portion of the first through-portion; a secondconnection member, disposed on the first encapsulant, including a secondredistribution layer; a second semiconductor chip, disposed on thesecond connection member, having a second connection pad; a secondencapsulant, disposed on the second connection member, covering at leasta portion of the second semiconductor chip; and a first through-viapenetrating through the first frame, the first encapsulant, and at leasta portion of the first connection member, and electrically connectingthe first redistribution layer and the second redistribution layer toeach other.

According to another aspect of an example embodiment, there is provideda semiconductor package comprising a first package structure including afirst connection member including a first redistribution layer, a firstsemiconductor chip, disposed on the first connection member and having afirst connection pad electrically connected to the first redistributionlayer, and a first encapsulant, disposed on the first connection memberand covering at least a portion of the first semiconductor chip; and asecond package structure including a second connection member includinga second redistribution layer, a second semiconductor chip, disposed onthe second connection member and having a second connection padelectrically connected to the second redistribution layer, and a secondencapsulant, disposed on the second connection member and covering atleast a portion of the second semiconductor chip, wherein the secondpackage structure is disposed on the first package structure, the firstredistribution layer and the second redistribution layer areelectrically connected to each other by a through-via, and thethrough-via is surround by an insulating material, disposed in athrough-hole penetrating through at least a portion of the first packagestructure and filling at least a portion of the through-hole.

According to another aspect of an example embodiment, there is provideda semiconductor package comprising a first connection member including afirst redistribution layer; a first semiconductor chip disposed abovethe first connection member and including a connection pad electricallyconnected to the first redistribution layer; a first frame disposedabove the first connection member and adjacent to the firstsemiconductor chip; a first encapsulant disposed above the firstsemiconductor chip and the first frame, and between the firstsemiconductor chip and the first frame; a second connection memberdisposed above the first encapsulant and including a secondredistribution layer; a second semiconductor chip disposed above thesecond connection member and including a second connection padelectrically connected to the second redistribution layer; a secondencapsulant disposed above the second connection member and covering atleast a portion of the second semiconductor chip; and a firstthrough-via penetrating through the first frame, the first encapsulant,and at least a portion of the first connection member, and electricallyconnecting the first redistribution layer and the second redistributionlayer to each other.

According to another aspect of an example embodiment, there is provideda semiconductor package comprising a first package structure including afirst connection member including a first redistribution layer; a frameincluding a through-portion, and a through-hole provided in an area ofthe frame other than the through-portion; a first semiconductor chipdisposed on the first connection member and in the through-portion ofthe frame, and electrically connected to the first redistribution layer;a first encapsulant disposed on the first connection member and coveringthe first semiconductor chip and at least a portion of the frame; and acover layer disposed on the first encapsulant; and a second packagestructure disposed on the cover layer, the second package structureincluding a second connection member including a second redistributionlayer; and a second semiconductor chip disposed on the second connectionmember and electrically connected to the second redistribution layer; athrough-post penetrating through the through-hole and electricallyconnecting the first redistribution layer to the second redistributionlayer; and an insulating material disposed between the through-hole andthe through-post.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects will be more clearly understood from thefollowing detailed description, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an example of anelectronic device system;

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example of anelectronic device;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are schematic cross-sectional views illustrating statesof a fan-in semiconductor package before and after being packaged;

FIG. 4 is schematic cross-sectional views illustrating a packagingprocess of a fan-in semiconductor package;

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a case in whicha fan-in semiconductor package is mounted on a printed circuit board andis ultimately mounted on a mainboard of an electronic device;

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a case in whicha fan-in semiconductor package is embedded in a printed circuit boardand is ultimately mounted on a mainboard of an electronic device;

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a fan-outsemiconductor package;

FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a case in whicha fan-out semiconductor package is mounted on a mainboard of anelectronic device;

FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating an example of asemiconductor package, according to example embodiments;

FIG. 10 is a cutaway plan view taken along line I-I′ of thesemiconductor package in FIG. 9, according to example embodiments;

FIG. 11 is a cutaway plan view taken along line II-IF of thesemiconductor package in FIG. 9, according to example embodiments;

FIGS. 12 to 15 are process diagrams illustrating an example ofmanufacturing the semiconductor package in FIG. 9, according to exampleembodiments;

FIG. 16 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating another exampleof a semiconductor package, according to example embodiments; and

FIG. 17 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating an example of asemiconductor package, according to example embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described as follows with reference tothe attached drawings. The shape and size of elements in the drawingsmay be exaggerated or reduced for clarity.

In various example embodiments, a plurality of package structures, eachincluding a semiconductor chip, are stacked vertically. At least one ofthe plurality of package structures has a through-portion in which asemiconductor chip is disposed. The stacked semiconductor packagestructures are electrically connected to each other by a through-viapenetrating through at least a frame of one of the package structures.

First, a general environment in which semiconductor packaging technologyis found and features of various types of semiconductor packagingtechnology will be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

Electronic Device

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an example of anelectronic device system.

Referring to FIG. 1, an electronic device 1000 may accommodate amainboard 1010 therein. The mainboard 1010 may include chip relatedcomponents 1020, network related components 1030, other components 1040,and the like, physically or electrically connected thereto. Thesecomponents may be connected to others to be described below to formvarious signal lines 1090.

The chip related components 1020 may include a memory chip such as avolatile memory (for example, a dynamic random access memory (DRAM)), anon-volatile memory (for example, a read only memory (ROM)), a flashmemory, or the like; an application processor chip such as a centralprocessor (for example, a central processing unit (CPU)), a graphicsprocessor (for example, a graphics processing unit (GPU)), a digitalsignal processor, a cryptographic processor, a microprocessor, amicrocontroller, or the like; and a logic chip such as ananalog-to-digital (ADC) converter, an application-specific integratedcircuit (ASIC), or the like. However, the chip related components 1020are not limited thereto, but may also include other types of chiprelated components. In addition, the chip related components 1020 may becombined with each other.

The network related components 1030 may include protocols such aswireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) (Institute of Electrical And ElectronicsEngineers (IEEE) 802.11 family, or the like), worldwide interoperabilityfor microwave access (WiMAX) (IEEE 802.16 family, or the like), IEEE802.20, long term evolution (LTE), evolution data only (Ev-DO), highspeed packet access+(HSPA+), high speed downlink packet access+(HSDPA+),high speed uplink packet access+(HSUPA+), enhanced data GSM environment(EDGE), global system for mobile communications (GSM), globalpositioning system (GPS), general packet radio service (GPRS), codedivision multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA),digital enhanced cordless telecommunications (DECT), Bluetooth, 3G, 4G,and 5G protocols, and any other wireless and wired protocols, designatedafter the abovementioned protocols. However, the network relatedcomponents 1030 are not limited thereto, but may also include a varietyof other wireless or wired standards or protocols. In addition, thenetwork related components 1030 may be combined with each other,together with the chip related components 1020 described above.

Other components 1040 may include a high frequency inductor, a ferriteinductor, a power inductor, ferrite beads, a low temperature co-firedceramic (LTCC), an electromagnetic interference (EMI) filter, amultilayer ceramic capacitor (MLCC), or the like. However, othercomponents 1040 are not limited thereto, but may also include passivecomponents used for various other purposes, or the like. In addition,other components 1040 may be combined with each other, together with thechip related components 1020 or the network related components 1030described above.

Depending on a type of the electronic device 1000, the electronic device1000 may include other components that may or may not be physically orelectrically connected to the mainboard 1010. These other components mayinclude, for example, a camera 1050, an antenna 1060, a display 1070, abattery 1080, an audio codec (not illustrated), a video codec (notillustrated), a power amplifier (not illustrated), a compass (notillustrated), an accelerometer (not illustrated), a gyroscope (notillustrated), a speaker (not illustrated), a mass storage unit (forexample, a hard disk drive) (not illustrated), a compact disk (CD) drive(not illustrated), a digital versatile disk (DVD) drive (notillustrated), or the like. However, these other components are notlimited thereto, but may also include other components used for variouspurposes depending on a type of electronic device 1000, or the like.

The electronic device 1000 may be a smartphone, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), a digital video camera, a digital still camera, anetwork system, a computer, a monitor, a tablet PC, a laptop PC, anetbook PC, a television, a video game machine, a smartwatch, anautomotive component, or the like. However, the electronic device 1000is not limited thereto, but may be any other electronic deviceprocessing data.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example of anelectronic device.

Referring to FIG. 2, a semiconductor package may be used for variouspurposes in the various electronic devices 1000 as described above. Forexample, a motherboard 1110 may be accommodated in a body 1101 of asmartphone 1100, and various electronic components 1120 may bephysically or electrically connected to the motherboard 1110. Inaddition, other components that may or may not be physically orelectrically connected to the motherboard 1110, such as a camera module1130, may be accommodated in the body 1101. Some of the electroniccomponents 1120 may be the chip related components, for example, asemiconductor package 1121, but are not limited thereto. The electronicdevice is not necessarily limited to the smartphone 1100, but may beother electronic devices as described above.

Semiconductor Package

Generally, numerous fine electrical circuits are integrated in asemiconductor chip. However, the semiconductor chip may not serve as afinished semiconductor product in itself, and may be damaged due toexternal physical or chemical impacts. Therefore, the semiconductor chipitself may not be used, but may be packaged and used in an electronicdevice, or the like, in a packaged state.

Here, semiconductor packaging is required due to the existence of adifference in a circuit width between the semiconductor chip and amainboard of the electronic device in terms of electrical connections.In detail, a size of connection pads of the semiconductor chip and aninterval between the connection pads of the semiconductor chip are veryfine, but a size of component mounting pads of the mainboard used in theelectronic device and an interval between the component mounting pads ofthe mainboard are significantly larger than those of the semiconductorchip. Therefore, it may be difficult to directly mount the semiconductorchip on the mainboard, and packaging technology for buffering adifference in a circuit width between the semiconductor chip and themainboard is required.

A semiconductor package manufactured by the packaging technology may beclassified as a fan-in semiconductor package or a fan-out semiconductorpackage depending on a structure and a purpose thereof.

The fan-in semiconductor package and the fan-out semiconductor packagewill hereinafter be described in more detail with reference to thedrawings.

Fan-in Semiconductor Package

FIGS. 3A and 3B are schematic cross-sectional views illustrating statesof a fan-in semiconductor package before and after being packaged.

FIG. 4 is schematic cross-sectional views illustrating a packagingprocess of a fan-in semiconductor package.

Referring to FIGS. 3A to 4, a semiconductor chip 2220 may be, forexample, an integrated circuit (IC) in a bare state, including a body2221 including silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), gallium arsenide (GaAs), orthe like, connection pads 2222 formed on one surface of the body 2221and including a conductive material such as aluminum (Al), or the like,and a passivation layer 2223 such as an oxide layer, a nitride layer, orthe like, formed on one surface of the body 2221 and covering at leastportions of the connection pads 2222. In this case, since the connectionpads 2222 may be significantly small, it may be difficult to mount theintegrated circuit (IC) on an intermediate level printed circuit board(PCB) as well as on the mainboard of the electronic device, or the like.

Therefore, a connection member 2240 may be formed depending on a size ofthe semiconductor chip 2220 on the semiconductor chip 2220 in order toredistribute the connection pads 2222. The connection member 2240 may beformed by forming an insulating layer 2241 on the semiconductor chip2220 using an insulating material such as a photoimagable dielectric(PID) resin, forming via holes 2243 h opening the connection pads 2222,and then forming wiring patterns 2242 and vias 2243. Then, a passivationlayer 2250 protecting the connection member 2240 may be formed, anopening 2251 may be formed, and an underbump metal layer 2260, or thelike, may be formed. That is, a fan-in semiconductor package 2200including, for example, the semiconductor chip 2220, the connectionmember 2240, the passivation layer 2250, and the underbump metal layer2260 may be manufactured through a series of processes.

As described above, the fan-in semiconductor package may have a packageform in which all of the connection pads, for example, input/output(I/O) terminals, of the semiconductor chip are disposed inside thesemiconductor chip, and may have excellent electrical characteristicsand be produced at a low cost. Therefore, many elements mounted insmartphones have been manufactured in a fan-in semiconductor packageform. In detail, many elements mounted in smartphones have beendeveloped to implement a rapid signal transfer while having a compactsize.

However, since all I/O terminals need to be disposed inside thesemiconductor chip in the fan-in semiconductor package, the fan-insemiconductor package has significant spatial limitations. Therefore, itis difficult to apply this structure to a semiconductor chip having alarge number of I/O terminals or a semiconductor chip having a compactsize. In addition, due to the disadvantage described above, the fan-insemiconductor package may not be directly mounted and used on themainboard of the electronic device. The reason is that even though asize of the I/O terminals of the semiconductor chip and an intervalbetween the I/O terminals of the semiconductor chip are increased by aredistribution process, the size of the I/O terminals of thesemiconductor chip and the interval between the I/O terminals of thesemiconductor chip are not enough to directly mount the fan-insemiconductor package on the mainboard of the electronic device.

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a case in whicha fan-in semiconductor package is mounted on a ball grid array (BGA)substrate and is ultimately mounted on a mainboard of an electronicdevice.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a case in whicha fan-in semiconductor package is embedded in a BGA substrate and isultimately mounted on a mainboard of an electronic device.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, in a fan-in semiconductor package 2200,connection pads 2222, that is, I/O terminals, of a semiconductor chip2220 may be redistributed through a BGA substrate 2301, and the fan-insemiconductor package 2200 may be ultimately mounted on a mainboard 2500of an electronic device in a state in which it is mounted on the BGAsubstrate 2301. In this case, solder balls 2270, and the like, may befixed by an underfill resin 2280, or the like, and an outer side of thesemiconductor chip 2220 may be covered with a molding material 2290, orthe like. Alternatively, a fan-in semiconductor package 2200 may beembedded in a separate BGA substrate 2302, connection pads 2222, thatis, I/O terminals, of the semiconductor chip 2220 may be redistributedby the BGA substrate 2302 in a state in which the fan-in semiconductorpackage 2200 is embedded in the BGA substrate 2302, and the fan-insemiconductor package 2200 may be ultimately mounted on a mainboard 2500of an electronic device.

As described above, it may be difficult to directly mount and use thefan-in semiconductor package on the mainboard of the electronic device.Therefore, the fan-in semiconductor package may be mounted on theseparate BGA substrate and be then mounted on the mainboard of theelectronic device through a packaging process or may be mounted and usedon the mainboard of the electronic device in a state in which it isembedded in the BGA substrate.

Fan-Out Semiconductor Package

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a fan-outsemiconductor package.

Referring to FIG. 7, in a fan-out semiconductor package 2100, forexample, an outer side of a semiconductor chip 2120 may be protected byan encapsulant 2130, and connection pads 2122 of the semiconductor chip2120 may be redistributed outwardly of the semiconductor chip 2120 by aconnection member 2140. In this case, a passivation layer 2150 mayfurther be formed on the connection member 2140, and an underbump metallayer 2160 may further be formed in openings of the passivation layer2150. Solder balls 2170 may further be formed on the underbump metallayer 2160. The semiconductor chip 2120 may be an integrated circuit(IC) including a body 2121, the connection pads 2122, a passivationlayer (not illustrated), and the like. The connection member 2140 mayinclude an insulating layer 2141, redistribution layers 2142 formed onthe insulating layer 2141, and vias 2143 electrically connecting theconnection pads 2122 and the redistribution layers 2142 to each other.

As described above, the fan-out semiconductor package may have a form inwhich I/O terminals of the semiconductor chip are redistributed anddisposed outwardly of the semiconductor chip through the connectionmember formed on the semiconductor chip. As described above, in thefan-in semiconductor package, all I/O terminals of the semiconductorchip need to be disposed inside the semiconductor chip. Therefore, whena size of the semiconductor chip is decreased, a size and a pitch ofballs need to be decreased, such that a standardized ball layout may notbe used in the fan-in semiconductor package. On the other hand, thefan-out semiconductor package has the form in which the I/O terminals ofthe semiconductor chip are redistributed and disposed outwardly of thesemiconductor chip through the connection member formed on thesemiconductor chip as described above. Therefore, even in a case inwhich a size of the semiconductor chip is decreased, a standardized balllayout may be used in the fan-out semiconductor package as it is, suchthat the fan-out semiconductor package may be mounted on the mainboardof the electronic device without using a separate BGA substrate, asdescribed below.

FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a case in whicha fan-out semiconductor package is mounted on a mainboard of anelectronic device.

Referring to FIG. 8, a fan-out semiconductor package 2100 may be mountedon a mainboard 2500 of an electronic device through solder balls 2170,or the like. That is, as described above, the fan-out semiconductorpackage 2100 includes the connection member 2140 formed on thesemiconductor chip 2120 and capable of redistributing the connectionpads 2122 to a fan-out region that is outside of a size of thesemiconductor chip 2120, such that the standardized ball layout may beused in the fan-out semiconductor package 2100 as it is. As a result,the fan-out semiconductor package 2100 may be mounted on the mainboard2500 of the electronic device without using an additional printedcircuit board (PCB) or the like.

As described above, since the fan-out semiconductor package may bemounted on the mainboard of the electronic device without using theseparate BGA substrate, the fan-out semiconductor package may beimplemented at a thickness lower than that of the fan-in semiconductorpackage using the BGA substrate. Therefore, the fan-out semiconductorpackage may be miniaturized and thinned. In addition, the fan-outelectronic component package has excellent thermal characteristics andelectrical characteristics, such that it is particularly appropriate fora mobile product. Therefore, the fan-out electronic component packagemay be implemented in a form more compact than that of a generalpackage-on-package (POP) type using a printed circuit board (PCB), andmay solve a problem due to the occurrence of a warpage phenomenon.

Meanwhile, the fan-out semiconductor package refers to packagetechnology for mounting the semiconductor chip on the mainboard of theelectronic device, or the like, as described above, and protecting thesemiconductor chip from external impacts, and is a concept differentfrom that of a printed circuit board (PCB) such as a BGA substrate, orthe like, having a scale, a purpose, and the like, different from thoseof the fan-out semiconductor package, and having the fan-insemiconductor package embedded therein.

Hereinafter, a semiconductor package, which may be thinned and achievehigh performance even if a plurality of semiconductor chips are includedtherein and may address warpage, according to example embodiments, willbe described with reference to accompanying drawings.

FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating an example of asemiconductor package, according to example embodiments. FIG. 10 is acutaway plan view taken along line I-I′ of the semiconductor package inFIG. 9, according to example embodiments, and FIG. 11 is a cutaway planview taken along line II-IF of the semiconductor package in FIG. 9,according to example embodiments.

Referring to FIGS. 9 to 11, a semiconductor package 300A includes afirst package structure 100A and a second package structure 200A. Thesecond package structure 200A is disposed on the first package structure100A. The first and second package structures 100A and 200A areintegrally coupled to each other. For example, a second connectionmember 240 of the second package structure 200A may be attached to acover layer 180 of the first package structure 100A. The cover layer 180may cover at least a portion of the second redistribution layer 242.

The first package structure 100A includes a first connection member 140including a first redistribution layer 142, a first frame 110, disposedon the first connection member 140 and having a first through-portion110H, a first semiconductor chip 120, disposed on the firstthrough-portion 110H and having a connection pad 122 electricallyconnected to the first redistribution layer 142, a first encapsulant130, disposed on the first connection member 140 and covering at least aportion of each of the first frame 110 and the first semiconductor chip120 and filling at least a portion of the first through-portion 110H, apassivation layer 150 disposed on a lower side of the first connectionmember 100A, a plurality of underbump metals 160 respectively disposedon openings of the passivation layer 150, a plurality of electricalconnection metals 170 respectively connected to the plurality ofunderbump metals 160, a cover layer 180 disposed on the firstencapsulant 130, and a through-via 190.

The second package structure 200A includes a second connection member240 including a second redistribution layer 240, a second frame 210,disposed on the second connection member 240 and having a secondthrough-hole 210H, a second semiconductor chip 220, disposed in thesecond through-portion 210H and having a second connection pad 222electrically connected to the second redistribution layer 242, and asecond encapsulant 230, disposed on the second connection member 240 andcovering at least a portion of each of the second frame 210 and thesecond semiconductor chip 220 and filling at least a portion of thesecond through-portion 210H.

In this case, the first and second redistribution layers 142 and 242 ofthe first and second connection members 140 and 240 are electricallyconnected to each other through the through-via 190 penetrating throughthe frame 110 and the first encapsulant 130. The through-via 190 maypenetrate through at least a portion of the first connection member 140.As a result, the through-via 190 may be connected to the firstredistribution layer 142 of the first connection member 140 through thefirst connection via 143 of the first connection member 140. Inaddition, the through-via 190 may penetrate through the cover layer 180to be directly connected to the second redistribution layer 242 of thesecond connection member 240. An electrical path may be provided throughthe through-via 190.

As described above, since the semiconductor package 300A includes thesecond package structure 200A disposed on and integrally coupled to thefirst package structure 100A, a total thickness of the package 300A maybe reduced. Since a vertical electrical connection path is providedthrough the through-via 190 while the first and second packagestructures 200A and 300A are integrally coupled to each other, a signalpath between the first and second semiconductor chips 120 and 220 may beshortened. As a result, signal electrical characteristics may beimproved. In addition, since the first package structure 100A and/or thesecond package structure 200A includes the first frame 110 and/or thesecond frame 210, process warpage may also be controlled.

The through-via 190 may penetrate through the first frame 110 and thefirst encapsulant 130 and may be disposed in a through-hole 190 h,further penetrating at least a portion of each of the first connectionmember 140 and the cover layer 180. The through-via 190 may be spacedapart from the first frame 110 and the first encapsulant 130 in thethrough-hole 190 h, and may be surrounded by an insulating material 195.The insulating material 195 may fill at least a portion of thethrough-hole 190 h, in the through-hole 190 h. By means of the aboveconfiguration, it may be further effective to provide an electricalconnection in a required location, and the through-via 190 may befurther tightly fixed through the insulating material 195 to improvereliability. The through-via 190 may be a cylindrical metal post, andthe insulating material 195 may be a photoimageable dielectric (PID).

Hereinafter, the components of the semiconductor package 300A accordingto an example embodiment will be described in further detail.

The frame 110 may further improve rigidity of the package 100A accordingto a detailed material and may serve to secure thickness uniformity ofthe encapsulant 130 and the like. The first frame 110 has the firstthrough-portion 110H penetrating through the first insulating layer 111.The first semiconductor chip 120 is disposed in the firstthrough-portion 110H. The through-portion 110H may have a shape of athrough-groove having continuously connected sidewalls. In someembodiments, the first frame 110 may further include a first conductorlayer 112 a and/or a second conductor layer 112 b disposed on a topsurface and/or a bottom surface of the insulating layer 111,respectively. In some embodiments, the first insulating layer 111 mayhave a multilayer structure and a conductor layer, not illustrated, maybe disposed in the first frame 110. In some embodiments, a wiring via,not illustrated, may be formed to electrically connect the first andsecond conductor layers 112 a and 112 b disposed on different levels.

A material of the first insulating layer 111 is not limited and may be,for example, an insulating material. The insulating material may be athermosetting resin such as an epoxy resin, a thermoplastic resin suchas a polyimide resin, a resin in which the thermosetting resin or thethermoplastic resin is mixed with an inorganic filler, for example, ABFor the like. Alternatively, the insulating material may be a material inwhich the abovementioned resin is impregnated together with an inorganicfiller in a core material such as a glass fiber (or a glass cloth or aglass fabric), for example, prepreg, or the like.

Each of the first and second conductor layers 112 a and 112 b mayinclude a metal material such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), silver(Ag), tin (Sn), gold (Au), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), titanium (Ti), oralloys thereof. The first and second conductor layers 112 a and 112 bmay be formed by a plating process and may include a seed layer and aplated layer, respectively. In some embodiments, the first conductorlayer 112 a and/or the second conductor layer 112 b may be disposed toextend to a wall surface of the first through-portion 110H. As a result,the first conductor layer 112 a and/or the second conductor layer 112 bmay surround a periphery of a side surface of the first semiconductorchip 120. In this case, heat radiation and electromagnetic interference(EMI) shielding effects may be achieved. In some embodiments, the firstconductor layer 112 a and/or the second conductor layer 112 b may beused as a ground pattern. The first conductor layer 112 a may beelectrically connected to the first redistribution layer 142 through thefirst connection via 143 of the first connection member 140. Forexample, the first conductor layer 112 a may be electrically connectedto a ground pattern of the first redistribution layer 142.

The first semiconductor chip 120 may be an integrated circuit (IC) in abare state in which hundreds to millions of elements are integrated in asingle chip. An integrated circuit (IC) of the first semiconductor chip120 may be, for example, a memory chip of a volatile memory (forexample, a DRAM), a nonvolatile memory (for example, a ROM), a flashmemory, or the like. Alternatively, the integrated circuit (IC) of thefirst semiconductor chip 120 may be an application processor chip suchas a central processor (for example, a central processing unit (CPU)), agraphics processor (for example, a graphics processing unit (GPU)), adigital signal processor, a cryptographic processor, a microprocessor, amicrocontroller, or the like. Alternatively, the integrated circuit (IC)of the first semiconductor chip 120 may be a logic chip of ananalog-to-digital converter, an application-specific integrated circuit,or the like.

The first semiconductor chip 120 may include a first body 121 in whichvarious circuits are formed. A first connection pad 122 may be formed onan active surface of the first body. The first body may 121 be formedbased on, for example, an active wafer. In this case, a base materialmay be silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), gallium arsenide (GaAs), or thelike. The first connection pad 122 may be provided to electricallyconnect the first semiconductor chip 120 to another component. The firstconnection pad 122 may be formed of a metal material, for example,copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), or the like. The first semiconductor chip122 may have an active surface on which a first passivation layer 123,including an oxide layer, having an opening exposing at least a portionof the first connection pad 122, and/or a nitride layer, may be formed.An insulating layer, not illustrated, may be further disposed in anotherrequired location. The first semiconductor chip 120 may be a bare die.In this case, the first connection pad 122 may be in physical contactwith the first connection via 143. However, in some embodiments, thefirst semiconductor chip 120 may be a packaged die having an activesurface on which a redistribution layer, not illustrated, and a metalbump, not illustrated, and the like are further formed.

The first encapsulant 130 may cover at least a portion of each of thefirst frame 110 and the first semiconductor chip 120. In addition, thefirst encapsulant 130 may fill at least a portion of the firstthrough-portion 110H. The first encapsulant 130 includes an insulatingmaterial. The insulating material may be a material including aninorganic filler and an insulating resin, for example, a thermosettingresin such as an epoxy resin, a thermoplastic resin such as a polyimideresin, or a resin in which a reinforcing material such as an inorganicfiller is included in such a resin, more specifically, ABF, FR-4, BT, orthe like. Alternatively, the insulating material may be a moldingmaterial such as an EMC. In some embodiments, the insulating materialmay be a photoimageable material, in detail, a photoimageableencapsulant (PIE). In some embodiments, the insulating material may beprepreg or the like.

The first connection member 140 may redistribute the first connectionpad 122 of the first semiconductor chip 120. Respective first connectionpads 122 of tens to millions of first semiconductor chip 120, havingvarious functions, may be redistributed through the first connectionmember 140 and may be physically and/or electrically connected to anexternal component through the electrical connection metal 170 dependingon functions thereof. The first connection member 140 includes a firstinsulating layer 141, a first redistribution layer 142 disposed on abottom surface of the first insulating layer 141, and a first connectionvia 143, penetrating through the first insulating layer 141, connectedto the first redistribution layer 142. The numbers of the firstinsulating layers 141, the first redistribution layers 142, and thefirst connection vias 143 may be greater or smaller than thoseillustrated in the drawings. For example, the number of layers,constituting the first connection member 140, may vary.

A material of the first insulating layer 141 may be an insulatingmaterial. The insulating material may be a photoimageable dielectric(PID). In this case, a fine pitch may be introduced through a photo via,which is advantageous in microcircuit and high-density semiconductorchips. Thus, tens to hundreds of first connection pads 122 of the firstsemiconductor chip 120 may be effectively redistributed. In a case inwhich plural first insulating layers 141 are provided, boundariesbetween the first insulating layers 141 may be apparent or unapparent.

The first redistribution layer 142 may redistribute the first connectionpad 122 of the first semiconductor chip 120 and may electrically connectthe redistributed first connection pad 122 to the electricallyconnection metal 170. The first redistribution layer 142 may be formedof a metal material such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), silver (Ag), tin(Sn), gold (Au), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), titanium (Ti), or alloysthereof. The first redistribution layer 142 may also perform variousfunctions depending on a design thereof. For example, the firstredistribution layer 142 may include a ground (GND) pattern, a power(PWR) pattern, a signal (S) pattern, and the like. The ground (GND)pattern and the power (PWR) pattern are the same as each other. Inaddition, the redistribution layer 142 may include various types of viapads, an electrical connection metal pad, and the like. The firstredistribution layer 142 may also be formed by a plating process and mayinclude a seed layer and a conductor layer.

The first connection via 143 may electrically connect the firstredistribution layer 142 respectively to the first connection pad 122and the through-via 190. In the case in which the first redistributionlayer 142 has a multilayer structure, the first redistribution layer 142electrically connect the first redistribution layers 142, disposed ondifferent layers, to each other. The first connection via 143 may alsobe formed of a metal material such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), silver(Ag), tin (Sn), gold (Au), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), titanium (Ti), oralloys thereof. The first connection via 143 may include a via forsignal, a via for power, a via for grounding, or the like. The via forpower and the via for grounding may be the same as each other. The firstconnection via 143 may be a filled-type via filed with a metal, or aconformal-type via in which a metal material is formed along a wallsurface of a via hole. The first connection via 143 may also be formedby a plating process, and may include a seed layer and a conductorlayer.

The first passivation layer 150 is an additional component disposed on alower side of the first connection member 140 to protect the connectionmember 1240 from external physical and chemical damage and the like. Thefirst passivation layer 150 may include a thermosetting resin. Forexample, the first passivation layer 150 may be an ABF, but a materialof the first passivation layer 150 is not limited thereto. The firstpassivation layer 150 may have a plurality of openings exposing at leasta portion of the first redistribution layer 142. There may be tens totens of thousands of openings. The number of openings may be greater orsmaller than tens to several tens of thousands. Each of the openings mayinclude a plurality of holes.

An underbump metal 160 may be also an additional component and mayimprove connection reliability of the electrical connection metal 170 toboard-level reliability of the semiconductor package 300A. There may betens to millions of openings. The number of openings may be greater orsmaller than tens to millions. The underbump metal 160 may be disposedon each opening of the passivation layer 150 to be electricallyconnected to the exposed first redistribution layer 142. The underbumpmetal 160 may be formed by a metallization method using a metal, but amethod of forming the underbump metal 160 is not limited thereto.

The electrical connection metal 170 is also an additional componentconfigured to physically and/or electrically connect the semiconductorpackage 300A to an external component. For example, the semiconductorpackage 300A may mount the electrical connection metal 170 on amainboard of an electrical device through the electrical connectionmetal 170. The electrical connection metal 170 may be disposed on abottom surface of the passivation layer 150 and may be electricallyconnected to the underbump metal 160. The electrical connection metal170 may be formed of a low melting point metal, for example, tin (Sn) ora tin-containing alloy. More specifically, the electrical connectionmetal 170 may be formed of a solder or the like, but such materials arejust an example and a material of the electrical connection metal 170 isnot limited thereto.

The electrical connection metal 170 may be a land, a ball, a pin, or thelike. The electrical connection metal 170 may be formed as a multilayerstructure or a single-layer structure. In the case in which theelectrical connection metal 170 is formed as a multilayer structure, theelectrical connection metal 170 may include a copper post and a solder.In the case in which the electrical connection metal 170 is formed as asingle-layer structure, the electrical connection metal 170 may includea tin-silver solder or copper. However, such materials are just anexample, and a material of the electrical connection metal 170 is notlimited thereto. The number, an interval, a disposition, and the like,of the electrical connection metal 170 are not limited, and may besufficiently modified by a person skilled in the art depending on designparticulars of the first connection pad 122 or the like.

At least one of the electrical connection metals 170 may be disposed ina fan-out region. The term “fan-out region” refers to a region exceptfor a region in which the first semiconductor chip 120 is disposed. Thefan-out package may have improved reliability as compared to a fan-inpackage, may allow a plurality of input/output (I/O) terminals to beimplemented, and may facilitate a three-dimensional (3D)interconnection. Moreover, as compared to a ball grid array (BGA)package, a land grid array (LGA) package, or the like, the fan-outpackage may be manufactured to have a small thickness, and may besuperior in price competitiveness.

The cover layer 180 may be disposed between the first encapsulant 130and the second connection member 240 to connect the first encapsulant130 and the second connection member 240 to each other. The cover layer180 may cover at least a portion of the second redistribution layer 242of the second connection member 240. The cover layer 180 may include aphotoimageable dielectric (PID), but a material of the cover layer 180is not limited thereto. The cover layer 180 may include a thermosettingresin such as an epoxy resin, a thermoplastic resin such as a polyimideresin, or a resin in which a reinforcing material such as an inorganicfiller is included in such a resin, more specifically, ABF, FR-4, BT, orthe like.

The through-via 190 is formed to electrically connect the first packagestructure 100A and the second package structure 200A to each other. Thethrough-via 190 may electrically connect the first redistribution layer142 of the first connection member 140 and the second redistributionlayer 242 of the second connection member 240 to each other. Thethrough-via 190 may penetrate through the first frame 110 and the firstencapsulant 130. In some embodiments, the through-via 190 may bedisposed in the through-hole 190 h further penetrating through at leasta portion of each of the first connection member 140 and the cover layer180. The through-via 190 may be spaced apart from the first frame 110and the first encapsulant 130 in the through-hole 190 h and may besurrounded by the insulating material 195, filling at least a portion ofthe through-hole 190 h, in the through-hole 190 h. The through-via 190may be a cylindrical metal post, for example, a copper post, and theinsulating material 195 may be a photoimageable dielectric (PID). In thedrawings, a bottom surface of the through-via 190, a bottom of theinsulating material 195, and a bottom surface of a primary firstredistribution layer 142 are coplanar with each other, but this is onlyan example, and in some embodiments, the bottom surface of thethrough-via 190, the bottom of the insulating material 195, and thebottom surface of a primary first redistribution layer 142 may belocated on different levels. For example, the bottom surface of thethrough-via 190 and the bottom surface of the insulating material 195may be disposed below the bottom surface of the first redistributionlayer 142. In this case, a height of the first connection via 143,connected to the through-via 190, may be smaller than a height of thefirst connection via 143 connecting the first redistribution layers 142disposed on different levels.

The second frame 210 may further improve rigidity of the second packagestructure 200A depending on a detailed material of the second insulatinglayer 211, and may serve to secure thickness uniformity of the secondencapsulant 230. The second frame 210 may have a second through-portion210H penetrating through the second insulating layer 211. A secondsemiconductor chip 220 is disposed in the second through-portion 210H.The second through-portion 210H may have a shape of a through-groovehaving continuously connected sidewalls. In some embodiments, the secondframe 210 may further include a third conductor layer 212 a and/or afourth conductor layer 212 b disposed on a top surface and/or a bottomsurface of the second insulating layer 211, respectively. In someembodiments, the second insulating layer 211 may have a multilayerstructure, and a conductor layer, not illustrated, may be disposed inthe second frame 210. In some embodiments, a wiring via, notillustrated, may be disposed to electrically connect the conductorlayers 212 a and 212 b disposed on different levels.

A material of the second insulating layer 211 is not limited and may be,for example, an insulating material. The insulating material may be athermosetting resin such as an epoxy resin, a thermoplastic resin suchas a polyimide resin, a resin in which the thermosetting resin or thethermoplastic resin is mixed with an inorganic filler, for example, ABFor the like. Alternatively, the insulating material may be a material inwhich the abovementioned resin is impregnated together with an inorganicfiller in a core material such as a glass fiber (or a glass cloth or aglass fabric), for example, prepreg, or the like.

Each of the third and fourth conductor layers 212 a and 212 b mayinclude a metal material such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), silver(Ag), tin (Sn), gold (Au), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), titanium (Ti), oralloys thereof. The third and fourth conductor layers 212 a and 212 bmay be formed by a known plating process and may include a seed layerand a plated layer, respectively. In some embodiments, the thirdconductor layer 212 a and/or the fourth conductor layer 212 b may bedisposed to extend to a wall surface of the second through-portion 210H.As a result, the second conductor layer 212 a and/or the third conductorlayer 212 b may surround a periphery of a side surface of the secondsemiconductor chip 220. In this case, heat radiation and electromagneticinterference (EMI) shielding effects may be achieved. The thirdconductor layer 212 a and/or the fourth conductor layer 212 b may beused as a ground pattern. The third conductor layer 112 a may beelectrically connected to the second redistribution layer 242 throughthe second connection via 233 of the second connection member 240. Forexample, the third conductor layer 212 a may be electrically connectedto a ground pattern of the second redistribution layer 242.

The second semiconductor chip 220 may be an integrated circuit (IC) in abare state in which hundreds to millions of elements are integrated in asingle chip. An integrated circuit (IC) of the second semiconductor chip220 may be, for example, a memory chip of a volatile memory (forexample, a DRAM), a nonvolatile memory (for example, a ROM), a flashmemory, or the like. Alternatively, the integrated circuit (IC) of thesecond semiconductor chip 220 may be an application processor chip suchas a central processor (for example, a central processing unit (CPU)), agraphics processor (for example, a graphics processing unit (GPU)), adigital signal processor, a cryptographic processor, a microprocessor, amicrocontroller, or the like. Alternatively, the integrated circuit (IC)of the second semiconductor chip 220 may be a logic chip of ananalog-to-digital converter, an application-specific integrated circuit,or the like. As an unlimited example, the semiconductor package 300A maybe used a stacked memory package.

The second semiconductor chip 220 may include a second body 221 in whichvarious circuits are formed. A second connection pad 222 may be formedon an active surface of the first body. The second body 221 may beformed based on, for example, an active wafer. In this case, a basematerial may be silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), gallium arsenide (GaAs),or the like. The second connection pad 222 may be provided toelectrically connect the second semiconductor chip 220 to anothercomponent. The second connection pad 222 may be formed of a metalmaterial, for example, copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), or the like. Thesecond semiconductor chip 222 may have an active surface on which asecond passivation layer 223, including an oxide layer, having anopening exposing at least a portion of the second connection pad 222,and/or a nitride layer, may be formed. An insulating layer, notillustrated, may be further disposed in another required location. Thesecond semiconductor chip 220 may be a bare die. In this case, thesecond connection pad 222 may be in physical contact with the secondconnection via 243. However, In some embodiments, the secondsemiconductor chip 220 may be a packaged die having an active surface onwhich a redistribution layer, not illustrated, and a metal bump, notillustrated, and the like ate further formed.

The second encapsulant 230 may cover at least a portion of each of thesecond frame 210 and the second semiconductor chip 220. In addition, thesecond encapsulant 230 may fill at least a portion of the secondthrough-portion 210H. The second encapsulant 230 includes an insulatingmaterial. The insulating material may be a material including aninorganic filler and an insulating resin, for example, a thermosettingresin such as an epoxy resin, a thermoplastic resin such as a polyimideresin, or a resin in which a reinforcing material such as an inorganicfiller is included in such a resin, more specifically, ABF, FR-4, BT, orthe like. Alternatively, the insulating material may be a moldingmaterial such as an EMC. In some embodiments, the insulating materialmay be a photoimageable material, in detail, a photoimageableencapsulant (PIE). In some embodiments, the insulating material may beprepreg or the like.

The second connection member 240 may redistribute the second connectionpad 222 of the second semiconductor chip 220. Respective secondconnection pads 222 of tens to millions of first semiconductor chips220, having various functions, may be redistributed through the secondconnection member 240. The second connection member 240 includes asecond insulating layer 241, a second redistribution layer 242 disposedon a bottom surface of the second insulating layer 241, and a secondconnection via 243, penetrating through the second insulating layer 241,connected to the second redistribution layer 242. The numbers of thesecond insulating layers 241, the second redistribution layers 242, andthe second connection vias 243 may be greater or smaller than thoseillustrated in the drawings. For example, the number of layers,constituting the second connection member 240, may vary depending on adesign.

A material of the second insulating layer 241 may be an insulatingmaterial. The insulating material may be a photoimageable dielectric(PID). In this case, a fine pitch may be introduced through a photo via,which is advantageous in microcircuit and high-density design. Thus,tens to hundreds of second connection pads 222 of the secondsemiconductor chip 220 may be effectively redistributed. In a case inwhich plural second insulating layers 241 are provided, boundariesbetween the second insulating layers 241 may be apparent or unapparent.

The second redistribution layer 242 may redistribute the secondconnection pad 222 of the second semiconductor chip 220. The secondredistribution layer 242 may be formed of a metal material such ascopper (Cu), aluminum (Al), silver (Ag), tin (Sn), gold (Au), nickel(Ni), lead (Pb), titanium (Ti), or alloys thereof. The secondredistribution layer 142 may also perform various functions depending ona design thereof. For example, the second redistribution layer 242 mayinclude a ground (GND) pattern, a power (PWR) pattern, a signal (S)pattern, and the like. The ground (GND) pattern and the power (PWR)pattern are the same as each other. In addition, the redistributionlayer 242 may include various types of via pads, an electricalconnection metal pad, and the like. The second redistribution layer 242may also be formed by a plating process and may include a seed layer anda conductor layer.

The second connection via 243 may electrically connect the secondredistribution layer 242 respectively to the second connection pad 222.In the case in which the second redistribution layer 242 has amultilayer structure, the second redistribution layer 242 electricallyconnect the second redistribution layers 242, disposed on differentlayers, to each other. The second connection via 243 may also be formedof a metal material such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), silver (Ag), tin(Sn), gold (Au), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), titanium (Ti), or alloysthereof. The second connection via 243 may include a via for signal, avia for power, a via for grounding, or the like. The via for power andthe via for grounding may be the same as each other. The secondconnection via 243 may be a filled-type via filed with a metal, or aconformal-type via in which a metal material is formed along a wallsurface of a via hole. The second connection via 243 may also be formedby a plating process, and may include a seed layer and a conductorlayer.

FIGS. 12 to 15 are process diagrams illustrating an example ofmanufacturing the semiconductor package in FIG. 9, according to exampleembodiments.

Referring to FIG. 12, a precursor 100A′ of a first package structure isprepared. For example, the precursor 100A′ of the first packagestructure, including a first frame 110, a first semiconductor chip 120,a first encapsulant 130, and a portion of a first insulating layer 140,a portion of a first connection via 143, and a portion of a firstredistribution layer 142, may be formed using a first carrier 410. Acover layer 180 is attached to a region in which the first carrier 410is removed. A though-hole 190 h, penetrating through the portion of thefirst connection 140, the first frame 110, the first encapsulant 130,and the cover layer 180, is formed using laser drilling and/ormechanical drilling.

Referring to FIG. 13, a second package structure 200A is prepared. Forexample, the second package structure 200A, including a second frame210, a second semiconductor chip 220, a second encapsulant 230, and asecond connection member 240, may be formed using a second carrier 420.A through-via 190 is formed on a second redistribution layer 242 of thesecond connection member 240. The through-via 190 may be in the form ofa metal post having a roughly cylindrical shape. The through-via 190 maybe formed by a plating process using a resist film.

Referring to FIG. 14, the prepared precursor 100A′ of the first packagestructure is laminated on the prepared second package structure 200A.For example, the precursor 100A′ of the first package structure may belaminated on the second package structure 200A in such a manner that thethrough-via 190, disposed on the second redistribution layer 242 of thesecond connection member 240, is disposed in the through-hole 190 hformed on the precursor 100A′ of the first package structure. In thiscase, at least a portion of the second redistribution layer 242 of thesecond connection member 240 may be embedded in the cover layer 180.

Referring to FIG. 15, at least a portion of the through-hole 190 h isfilled with the insulating material 195. In some embodiments, theinsulating material 195 may be disposed to cover at least a portion ofthe first redistribution layer 142 and may include a photoimageabledielectric. Therefore, a portion of the insulating material 195 may beused as a portion of the first insulating layer 141 of the firstconnection member 140. In some embodiments, a passivation layer 150 andan underbump metal 160 are formed on the first connection member 140.The second carrier 420 is removed. In some embodiments, an electricalconnection metal 170 is formed to be connected to the underbump metal160, and a reflow process is performed. As a result, a semiconductorpackage 300A including the first package structure 100A and the secondpackage structure 200A may be manufactured.

FIG. 16 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating another exampleof a semiconductor package, according to example embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 16, a semiconductor package 300B may include a firstpackage structure 100B, which is slightly different from theabove-described first package structure 100A of the semiconductorpackage 300A, and a second package structure 200B which is the same asthe above-described second package structure 200A of the semiconductorpackage 300A. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 16, at least a portionof a passivation layer 150 of the first package structure 100B may fillat least a portion of a through-hole 190 h as an insulating material195. For example, when the through-hole 190 h is filled with theinsulating material 195, the insulating material 195 may be formed tocover a first connection member 140. Thus, the portion of the insulatingmaterial 195 that does not fill the through-hole 190 h may be used asthe passivation layer 150. Descriptions of the other components aresubstantially the same as described above, and will be omitted hereinfor conciseness.

FIG. 17 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating an example of asemiconductor package, according to example embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 17, a semiconductor package 300C may include a thirdpackage structure 200C′ further disposed on a second package structure200C, similarly to the above-described semiconductor package 300A inwhich the second package structure 200A is disposed on the first packagestructure 100A. For example, a greater number of package structures100C, 200C, and 200C′ may be stacked vertically and may be integrallycoupled to each other.

The first package structure 100C may include a first connection member140 including a first redistribution layer 142, a first frame 110,disposed on the first connection member 140, having a firstthrough-portion 110H, a first semiconductor chip 120, disposed in thefirst through-portion 110H, having a first connection pad 122electrically connected to the first redistribution layer 142, a firstencapsulant 130, disposed on the first connection member 140, coveringat least a portion of each of the first frame 110 and the firstsemiconductor chip 120 and filling at least a portion of the firstthrough-portion 110H, a passivation layer 150 disposed on a lower sideof the first connection member 100C, a plurality of underbump metals160, each being disposed on an opening of the passivation layer 150, aplurality of electrical connection metals 170 respectively connected tothe plurality of underbump metals 160, a first cover layer 180 disposedon the first encapsulant 130, and a first through-via 190.

The second package structure 200C may include a second connection member240 including a second redistribution layer 242, a second frame 210,disposed on the second connection member 240, having a secondthrough-portion 210H, a second semiconductor chip 220, disposed in thesecond through-portion 210H, having a second connection pad 222electrically connected to the second redistribution layer 242, a secondencapsulant 230, disposed on the second connection member 240, coveringat least a portion of each of the second frame 210 and the secondsemiconductor chip 220 and filling at least a portion of the secondthrough-portion 210H, a second cover layer 280 disposed on the secondencapsulant 230, and a second through-via 290.

The third package structure 200C′ may include a third connection member240′ including a third redistribution layer 242′, a third frame 210′,disposed on the third connection member 240′, having a thirdthrough-portion 210H′, a third semiconductor chip 220′, disposed in thethird through-portion 210H′, having a third connection pad 222′electrically connected to the third redistribution layer 242′, and athird encapsulant 230′, disposed on the third connection member 240′,covering at least a portion of each of the third frame 210′ and thethird semiconductor chip 220′ and filling at least a portion of thethird through-portion 210H′.

The first and second redistribution layers 142 and 242 of the first andsecond connection members 140 and 240 are electrically connected to eachother through the first through-via 190 penetrating through at least thefirst frame 110 and the first encapsulant 130. The first through-via 190may penetrate through at least a portion of the first connection member140. As a result, the first through-via 190 may be connected to thefirst redistribution layer 141 of the first connection member 140through the first connection via 143 of the first connection member 140.The first through-via 190 may penetrate through the first cover layer180 to be directly connected to the second redistribution layer 242 ofthe second connection member 240. An electrical connection path may beprovided through the first through-via 190. The first through-via 190may penetrate through the first frame 110 and the first encapsulant 130.In some embodiments, the first through-via 190 may be disposed in thefirst through-hole 190 h further penetrating through at least a portionof each of the first connection member 140 and the first cover layer180. The first through-via 190 may be spaced apart from the first frame110 and the first encapsulant 130 in the first through-hole 190 h, andmay be surrounded by the first insulating material 195, filling at leasta portion of the first through-hole 190 h, in the first through-hole 190h. The first through-via 190 may have shape of a roughly cylindricalmetal post, and the first insulating material 195 may be aphotoimageable dielectric. However, the shape and the material thereofare not limited thereto.

The second and third redistribution layers 242 and 242′ of the secondand third connection members 240 and 240′ may be electrically connectedto each other through the second through-via 290 penetrating through atleast the second frame 210 and the second encapsulant 230. The secondthrough-via 290 may penetrate through at least a portion of the secondconnection member 240. As a result, the second through-via 290 may beconnected to the second redistribution layer 242 of the secondconnection member 240 through the second connection via 243 of thesecond connection member 240. The second through-via 290 may penetratethrough the second cover layer 280 to be directly connected to the thirdredistribution layer 242′ of the third connection member 240′. Anelectrical connection path may be provided through the secondthrough-via 290. The second through-via 290 may penetrate through thesecond frame 210 and the second encapsulant 230. In some embodiments,the second through-via 290 may be disposed in the second through-hole290 h further penetrating through at least a portion of each of thesecond connection member 240 and the second cover layer 280. The secondthrough-via 290 may be spaced apart from the second frame 210 and thesecond encapsulant 230 in the second through-hole 290 h and may besurrounded by the second insulating material 295, filling at least aportion of the second through-hole 290 h, in the second through-hole 290h. The second through-via 290 may have a shape of a roughly cylindricalmetal post and the second insulating material 295 may be aphotoimageable dielectric. However, the shape and the material thereofare not limited thereto.

Descriptions of the other components are substantially the same asdescribed above, and will be omitted herein for conciseness.

As described above, a semiconductor package, which may be thinned andachieve high performance even if a plurality of semiconductor chips areincluded therein, may be provided.

In the present disclosure, a “lower” side, a “lower portion”, a “lowersurface”, and the like, are used to refer to a direction toward amounting surface of the fan-out semiconductor package in relation tocross sections of the drawings, while an “upper” side, an “upper”portion, an “upper” surface, and the like, are used to refer to adirection opposite to the direction toward a mounting surface. However,these directions are defined for convenience of explanation, and theclaims are not particularly limited by the directions defined asdescribed above.

The meaning of a “connection” of a component to another component in thedescription includes an indirect connection through an adhesive layer aswell as a direct connection between two components. In addition,“electrically connected” means the concept including a physicalconnection and a physical disconnection. It can be understood that whenan element is referred to with “first” and “second”, the element is notlimited thereby. They may be used only for a purpose of distinguishingthe element from the other elements, and may not limit the sequence orimportance of the elements. In some cases, a “first” element may bereferred to as a “second” element without departing from the scope ofthe claims set forth herein. Similarly, a “second” element may also bereferred to as a “first” element.

The term “an example embodiment” used herein does not refer to the sameexample embodiment, and is provided to emphasize a particular feature orcharacteristic different from that of another exemplary embodiment.However, example embodiments provided herein are considered to be ableto be implemented by being combined in whole or in part one withanother. For example, one element described in a particular exemplaryembodiment, even if it is not described in another exemplary embodiment,may be understood as a description related to another exemplaryembodiment, unless an opposite or contradictory description is providedtherein.

Terms used herein are used only in order to describe an exampleembodiment rather than limiting the present disclosure. In this case,singular forms include plural forms unless interpreted otherwise incontext.

While example embodiments have been shown and described above, it willbe apparent to those skilled in the art that modifications andvariations could be made without departing from the scope of the presentdisclosure as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of manufacturing a semiconductorpackage, the method comprising: forming a first package structure, thefirst package structure comprising a first connection member including afirst redistribution layer, a first frame disposed on the firstconnection member and having a first through-portion, a firstsemiconductor chip disposed in the first through-portion and having aconnection pad electrically connected to the first redistribution layer,and a first encapsulant disposed on the first connection member andcovering at least a portion of each of the first frame and the firstsemiconductor chip; forming a second package structure, the secondpackage structure comprising a second connection member disposed on thefirst encapsulant and including a second redistribution layer, a secondsemiconductor chip disposed on the second connection member and having asecond connection pad, and a second encapsulant disposed on the secondconnection member and covering at least a portion of the secondsemiconductor chip; forming a first through-via disposed on the secondconnection member, the first through-via electrically connecting to thesecond redistribution layer; and laminating the first package structureon the second package structure; wherein, after the laminating, thefirst through-via penetrates through the first frame, the firstencapsulant, and at least a portion of the first connection member, andis electrically connected to the first redistribution layer.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising: forming a first through-hole,penetrating through at least a portion of the first connection member,the first frame, and the first encapsulant, wherein the firstthrough-via is disposed in the first through-hole.
 3. The method ofclaim 2, wherein the first through-hole is formed using at least one oflaser drilling and mechanical drilling.
 4. The method of claim 2,wherein the first through-via has a shape of a cylindrical metal post.5. The method of claim 2, further comprising: filling an insulatingmaterial in at least a portion of the first through-hole, wherein thefirst through-via is spaced apart from the first frame and the firstencapsulant in the first through-hole, and wherein the first through-viais surrounded by the insulating material in the first through-hole. 6.The method of claim 5, wherein the insulating material comprises aphotoimageable dielectric (PID).
 7. The method of claim 5, furthercomprising: forming a passivation layer on a first side of the firstconnection member opposing a second side on which the first frame andthe first semiconductor chip are disposed, wherein the insulatingmaterial includes an extension portion on the first side of the firstconnection member, the extension portion being provided as at least aportion of the passivation layer.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein thefirst through-via is connected to the first redistribution layer througha first connection via of the first connection member.
 9. The method ofclaim 2, further comprising: attaching a cover layer to the firstencapsulant before forming the first through-hole, wherein the firstthrough-hole penetrates through the cover layer.
 10. The method of claim9, wherein the cover layer is disposed between the first encapsulant andthe second connection member, and covers at least a portion of thesecond redistribution layer, wherein the first through-via penetratesthrough the cover layer to be directly connected to the secondredistribution layer.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the firstthrough-via is formed by a plating process using a resist film.
 12. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising: forming a passivation layer on aside of the first connection member opposing a side on which the firstframe and the first semiconductor chip are disposed, wherein thepassivation layer has a plurality of openings each exposing at least aportion of the first redistribution layer; forming a plurality ofunderbump metals on the plurality of openings of the passivation layerrespectively, each being electrically connected to the exposed portionof the first redistribution layer; and forming a plurality of electricalconnection metals, respectively connected to the plurality of underbumpmetals to be each electrically connected to the exposed portion of thefirst redistribution layer.
 13. The method of claim 1, wherein thesecond package structure further comprises a second frame, disposed onthe second connection member and having a second through-portion inwhich the second semiconductor chip is disposed, and the secondencapsulant covers at least a portion of the second frame and fills atleast a portion of the second through-portion.
 14. The method of claim13, further comprising: forming a third package structure, the thirdpackage structure comprising a third connection member disposed on thesecond encapsulant and including a third redistribution layer, a thirdframe disposed on the third connection member and having a thirdthrough-portion, a third semiconductor chip disposed in the thirdthrough-portion and having a third connection pad electrically connectedto the third redistribution layer, and a third encapsulant disposed onthe third connection member and covering at least a portion of each ofthe third frame and the third semiconductor chip and filling at least aportion of the third through-portion; forming a second through-via onthe third connection member and electrically connecting the thirdredistribution layer; and laminating the second package structure on thethird package structure; wherein the second through-via penetratesthrough the second frame, the second encapsulant, and at least a portionof the second connection member, and is electrically connected to thesecond redistribution layer.
 15. A method of manufacturing asemiconductor package, the method comprising: forming a first packagestructure, the first package structure comprising a first connectionmember including a first redistribution layer, a first semiconductorchip disposed on the first connection member and having a firstconnection pad electrically connected to the first redistribution layer,and a first encapsulant disposed on the first connection member andcovering at least a portion of the first semiconductor chip; forming athrough-hole, the through-hole penetrating through the at least aportion of the first connection member and the first encapsulant;forming a second package structure, the second package structurecomprising a second connection member including a second redistributionlayer, a second semiconductor chip disposed on the second connectionmember and having a second connection pad electrically connected to thesecond redistribution layer, and a second encapsulant disposed on thesecond connection member and covering at least a portion of the secondsemiconductor chip; forming a through-via disposed on the secondconnection member and electrically connecting the second redistributionlayer; laminating the first package structure on the second packagestructure; and filling an insulating material in at least a portion ofthe through-hole, wherein, after the laminating, the firstredistribution layer and the second redistribution layer areelectrically connected to each other by the through-via, and thethrough-via is surrounded by the insulating material, disposed in thethrough-hole penetrating through at least a portion of the first packagestructure.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the first packagestructure further comprises a first frame, disposed on the firstconnection member and having a first through-portion in which the firstsemiconductor chip is disposed, the first encapsulant covers at least aportion of the first frame and fills at least a portion of the firstthrough-portion, and the first through-portion penetrates through thefirst frame and the first encapsulant.
 17. A method of manufacturing asemiconductor package, the method comprising: forming a first packagestructure, the first package structure comprising a first connectionmember including a first redistribution layer, a first semiconductorchip disposed above the first connection member and including aconnection pad electrically connected to the first redistribution layer,a first frame disposed above the first connection member and adjacent tothe first semiconductor chip, and a first encapsulant disposed above thefirst semiconductor chip and the first frame, and between the firstsemiconductor chip and the first frame; forming a second packagestructure, the second package structure comprising a second connectionmember disposed above the first encapsulant and including a secondredistribution layer, and a second semiconductor chip disposed above thesecond connection member and including a second connection padelectrically connected to the second redistribution layer, forming athrough-via disposed on the second connection member and electricallyconnecting the second redistribution layer; and laminating the firstpackage structure on the second package structure; wherein, after thelaminating, the through-via penetrates through the first frame, thefirst encapsulant, and at least a portion of the first connectionmember, and is electrically connected to the first redistribution layer.18. The method of claim 17, further comprising: forming a through-hole,penetrating through the at least a portion of the first connectionmember, the first frame, and the first encapsulant; and filling aninsulating material in at least a portion of the through-hole afterlaminating the first package structure on the second package structure,wherein the through-via is disposed in the through-hole and surroundedby the insulating material.
 19. The method of claim 18, furthercomprising: forming a passivation layer below the first connectionmember, wherein the passivation layer is directly in contact with theinsulating material and integrated with the insulating material.
 20. Themethod of claim 17, further comprising: forming electrical connectionmetals protruding from a lower surface of the first connection memberand electrically connected to the first redistribution layer.